A Vow To Experiment
by hulafreaky
Summary: Sherlock asks Molly over for an experiment. Little did she know, it did not involve pigs' blood.


_Come to 221B at your earliest convenience. _

_SH_

_What's wrong?_

_ -Molly xx_

_John is out. I need an assistant. _

_SH_

_Oh. An assistant for what? A case?_

_-Molly xx_

_No, more of an experiment. _

_SH_

_Alright then. Do I need to bring anything? _

_-Molly xx_

_Just your body and brain. _

_SH_

_Okay. I'll be there shortly then. _

_-Molly xx_

Sherlock read her last message and waited patiently in his chair. He didn't know what was running through his mind but he wanted to test these strange theories. He awaited the knock of his pathologist.

Molly wasn't really sure why Sherlock had invited her over. He never had before. He always requested her to come to Bart's so he could see a body, or use the lab. Either way she still dressed up a little bit. Molly did love the man after all. Once she felt ready, she collected her purse, and went to hail a cab. After reaching 221b, she paid the cabbie, and went to knock on the front door.

Sherlock listened carefully for the slam of the cab door. He sprinted down the stairs and reached for the door. He was home alone; John was out with Mary and Mrs. Hudson had gone for the weekend with her old friends. Sherlock took a deep breath before opening the door. He spotted her instantly, just as she was about to knock. He looked her up and down. She was dressed in a nice blouse with jeans and a simple cardigan over top. It was somewhat strange to not see her in her usual frumpy jumper or lab coat.

"Oh, hello Sherlock." Molly greeted him with a grin, and then stood there a bit awkwardly, having not expected him to be at the door already. "I um...brought body, and my brain." She said a bit lamely, then cleared her throat. "Anyway, may I come in? It's a bit chilly out here." Molly asked as she rubbed her arms and stepped closer towards Sherlock. He was looking her over. She could tell. And Molly really hoped be did not have some spiteful deduction about her.

He nods and allows her in with a simple gesture of his arm. He was still looking over her. Something about her was different. "I see you got dressed up to see me." Sherlock commented bluntly.

Molly blushed, and bit her lip. "Well I...I just wanted to look nice." She mumbled, and shrugged. Of course Sherlock was right. Molly had even worn fancy pair of bra, and knickers that matched in hopes that she would be more confident.

Sherlock caught sight of her biting her lip and felt a strange feeling in his lower gut. He shook his head and walked up the stairs. "Come along then."

Molly nodded, and followed after the detective. "So what kind of experiment is this?" She asked curiously as she stepped through the door of Sherlock's flat. Molly was just going to feel silly now for dressing up, because they were experimenting and probably with something gross like pigs' blood.

"One of human behaviour." Sherlock informed her simply. "You are infatuated with me, yes?"

Molly blinked several times, and blushed. There was no denying it. "Yes." she whispers, nodding.

Sherlock nodded. "Perfect." He closed the distance between them with a few steps and placed his hands on her cheeks, pulling her in for a kiss. He placed his lips on hers and noted the subtle softness of her face and mouth. It was a strange feeling. He's only ever kissed a few women before and none of those kisses felt like this. He left his eyes open during the beginning but felt the need to close them. They stayed like this for what felt like an eternity.

"Sherlock wha-" Molly squeaked as she saw a strange look in his eyes, and the way he stepped closer. For a moment it was like he was a large cat and she was his prey. When his lips pressed hers, her eyes instantly, and she began to wonder just what on earth she was doing. But Molly found she could care because Sherlock's lips felt too good against her own.

He pulled away and turned his back to hers. He stared out the window of his flat not saying a word, waiting for Molly to say something completely idiotic. He knew that this was just an experiment but for some odd reason, he wanted to do it again; feel her lips against his. He shook his head as if to rid him of these thoughts and remind him what his intentions were.

Molly gasped as Sherlock pulled away, feeling a bit confused about everything. She watched in even more confusion as he turned away from her to look out the window. "That...was your experiment?" Molly asked as she continued not look at his back as she worries her bottom lip with her teeth.

"Partially, yes." He took note of the hurt in her voice. "I was, um," For the first time, Sherlock did not know what to say. He was worried that what he would say would hurt Molly. He's never worried about it before but now, it was different.

"You were just using me again." Molly said simply, and then looked down at her feet for a moment. She wasn't sure what she had expected. Messing around in pigs' blood would have been better than this. "Well I hope you find all the results you needed." Molly whispered before she turned back around to make her way to the door.

Sherlock didn't turn around to stop her. He was afraid of having these feelings for her. He just wanted to ignore them. This experiment was not turning out the way he expected it to. He heard the slam of the door and watched her through the window. She stood on the sidewalk trying to hail a cab. It was already dark so it would be hard to find a cab out here this late. He rolled his eyes at her obliviousness and grabbed his coat and scarf. He walked down the stairs, opened the door and called out to her. "You won't be able to get a cab."

Molly tried to force herself not to cry, but the silent tears were already slipping from her eyes. _Why did Sherlock have to hurt her so?_ When Molly heard him calling to her, and turned to glare at him. "Then I'll just walk home, or take the tube." She bit back stubbornly, and began to stomp away.

He started to follow her, staying a few steps behind. "I'll escort you. London is dangerous at this time of night.

"I don't want to be escorted by you." Molly huffed, and crossed her arms before she reached up to wipe at a few stray tears. After everything she had done for him, he was still going to just use her. It really hurt a lot.

"I don't care what you want. I'd rather not have my pathologist jumped in the middle of a dark alley." Sherlock took a few brisk steps so he was right behind her.

"You don't care about me. You'd probably like it. Just another case for you to solve. Who jumped Molly Hooper? Yeah, you'd really love it." Molly mumbled as she kept looking straight ahead.

"Molly!" He grabbed her wrist and spun her around to face him.

"Let go of me." Molly cried, and tried pulling her wrist free. She didn't want to see him; his stupid face or his stupid cheekbones.

"Isn't that want you wanted? To kiss me? Why is it that you are making a big deal about it? I was simply doing what you wanted." Sherlock kept a firm grasp on her wrist.

"Not like that! Not an experiment!" Molly yelled, the tears pouring from her eyes now, making her cheeks glisten as she kept tugging away from Sherlock's hand.

Sherlock let go of her wrist and quickly grabbed her face before she could run away. "You're jumping to conclusions, Molly." He placed his lips against hers again.

Molly gasped, and pushed on Sherlock's chest before his sweet lips could the better of her again. "Stop it. I don't want your kisses if you're just going to use me, and turn them into data. I want you to kiss me because you want to. Because you like me."

"That is why I am kissing you!" He exclaimed and threw his hands up in the air in exasperation. He turned away from her and rubbed his right temple with his fingers.

"You said it was an experiment! How was I to know?" Molly yelled right back, and then buried her face in her hands for a moment. "You need to talk to me, and be honest with me."

"I don't know what you want from me, Molly. I honestly don't."

"You're the one who invited me over. You're the one who kissed me." Molly mumbled as she gives the consulting detective a look.

"Because I love you!" He shouted without looking at her.

Molly gasped, her cheeks turning red as she looked to Sherlock with wide eyes. "You're telling the truth?"

"When have I ever lied to you?" He turned to face Molly.

"You just did. You said you needed help with an experiment, and really you just wanted to kiss me. If a kiss is what you want, then please be specific." Molly whispered as she continued to look at Sherlock carefully. "I didn't know you felt that way about me."

"I didn't lie, Molly. It was an experiment. I wanted to see if these feelings were in fact true. However, I didn't want them to be. I hoped that they weren't. I'd be lying if I told you that I want to love you, that I want these feelings for you." Sherlock stared at the ground, not wanting to see the hurt in her eyes.

"Oh..." Molly mumbled, and then looked down as well. "I love you too. Though I suppose you don't want to hear that, though I don't really care at the moment. I've loved you for a long time Sherlock. A really long time."

"Why?" He asked curiously. "Why am I such a great man to you? Everyone else seems to think otherwise."

Molly finally looked up to meet Sherlock's gaze, and swallowed hard. "True, you're rude, and mean a lot of the times. Though you're brilliant, and handsome. And you know what I think? I think you have a really big heart. A heart that's just as big as that massive intellect of yours. You don't let very many people in though, only people you can trust because you don't want to get your heart broken. Even then though you still don't open up to the people you care about because you don't want to risk getting hurt at all."

Sherlock smiled. "Impressive deduction, Dr. Hooper." He took a step towards her and reached for her hand. "So, you are willing to be with me despite what you have just mentioned?"

"I'm only willing to be with you if it's what you want." Molly mumbled as she pulled her hand back, not trusting him fully just yet. "You just said you didn't want to love me. I want to know what you want, Sherlock."

"I don't want to love you, Molly, because you are a great distraction. When I am in the lab working on a case, you distract me with your presence. That is why I ask you to leave when I am working on something important. I know you assumed it was because I found you irritating but you were incorrect. I find you fascinating, Molly. Everything about you is enticing. And I feel that if I have these feelings for you, I will amount to nothing more than the man who fell for the incredible pathologist and woman that is Molly Hooper." Sherlock took hold of her hand again.

Molly swallowed hard at his words, and does not pull her hand away this time. "Oh." is all she can manage to whisper at the moment. "All I know is that I've tried getting over you, and I can't. I wanted to because it hurts to love you sometimes, but each time it never worked out. If you're willing to try...a relationship, then so am I."

"I don't want a relationship, Molly. We already have one and you know that." Sherlock brought her hand to his mouth and placed a kiss to her knuckles. "I want something more."

"More? Like what?" Molly asked as she stared at Sherlock intently, her brown eyes wide, and still glistening a bit from all the crying she had done.

"I want a promise. A vow." He whispered to her as he got down on one knee. "I'm not looking for a measly relationship, Molly. You of all people should know that when I find something I want, I will go to extreme lengths to get it." He pulled out a box from his trouser pocket. "I want an eternity with someone who will take me for who I am; who will understand when I need to be alone; and who understands me. That year after the fall was the hardest I've ever experienced because I didn't get to see you. Even now, I don't get to be with you as often as I would like and that kills me. This experiment is not for me, it is for you."

Molly gasps as she realises where this conversation is going, and she watches Sherlock with wide eyes. "I...I..." she whispers, unsure of what to say. This was all so sudden. "I understand. I love you."

Sherlock smiled. "No need to state the obvious." He opened the box revealing an antique ring belonging to his mother. "Just a simple yes or no will suffice."

"Oh, Yes then. Yes." Molly nods, a bit surprised at herself. She normally liked planning, and waiting, but this was Sherlock, and she loved him so much. And here he was asking her to marry him. "Yes."

He grinned and placed the ring on her left ring finger. He stood up and embraced her in a kiss. "Turns out my experiment of vows was actually quite promising."

Molly looked at the ring, and smiled before she kissed Sherlock back. "Yeah, I suppose it was."


End file.
